Benefits Of Learning A Second Language At The Language And Enrichment Center

Posted by: NJ Kids Contributors - January 31, 2017

Let’s Play in Italian is the first New Jersey State bilingual
preschool and kindergarten licensed to teach both
English and Italian.

Catiana Celentano, founder of
“Let’s Play in Italian,” and the L.E.C., Language and
Enrichment Center, a non-profit 501c-3 that offers a
variety of classes, has been teaching children Italian
as a second language since 2005. Starting in 2017 the
L.E.C will now offer Spanish as a second language.
Since opening, the Let’s Play in Italian has expanded
to a full and half day preschool and kindergarten with
FREE before and aftercare. With the help of supportive
and patient teachers, children ages 2 ½ to 5 years old
will learn not only their ABC’s and 1-2-3’s, but also
develop a strong understanding of the Italian language
and culture. Included in your child’s day is our English
lab which prepares the children to be ready for English
elementary school.

Celentano says, “We believe that each child is unique
and has an individual learning strength that we use
to our advantage in the small class sizes. Given the
immense amount of benefits children gain from learning
a second language, why not have them learn Italian, a
beautiful language, in a fun and nurturing environment?”
Studies have shown that bilingual children out perform
their monolingual peers in many aspects. Bilingual
children have been shown to be better communicators,
have heightened cognitive ability, and be better
problem solvers. They are more spatially aware, more
empathetic, and more flexible in their thinking, and their
working memories can sustain greater demands than
the memories of children who only speak one language.
In addition, they show higher levels of control and can
better adapt to both logical problems and complex social
situations.

It is crucial for children to learn another language when
they are still young. Studies have shown that between
the ages of 8 and 12 children lose the ability to learn and produce new sounds: any language learned after this
age will be accompanied by a permanent accent. Children’s
brains are wired to easily learn new languages,
allowing them to develop fluency in any language they
are exposed to. Some parents worry that their children
might become confused when exposed to multiple
languages, and believe that this delays the speech
of a child. However, a study done by the University of
Washington revealed that babies are able to differentiate
between two languages even before they can speak.

The learning of another language is greatly beneficial
both in childhood and later in life. Those who are
bilingual have better memories and maintain their
mental capacity longer than adults who only speak
one language. Bilingual children have been found to
have higher intelligence, score higher on the SATs, and
have better multitasking skills. Being fluent in multiple
languages ensures diverse cultural knowledge, and thus
bilingual people are able to view issues from different
perspectives; this ability is critical when facing issues
in our international society. It is crucial to expose our
children to other languages during their prime learning
stage, because being multilingual provides an edge
unattainable to those who only speak one language.